Pope's Prayer Omits Israel, And Words Fly

By IAN FISHER

Published: July 26, 2005

Israel and the Vatican traded sharp words on Monday over a Sunday sermon in which the new pope, Benedict XVI, prayed that God would stop the ''murderous hand'' of terrorists who had struck in ''Egypt, Turkey, Iraq, Great Britain.''

Israel summoned the Vatican ambassador there to explain why Pope Benedict had failed to mention attacks against Jews. An Israeli Foreign Ministry statement charged that the pope, in a brief sermon delivered from his vacation retreat in the Italian Alps, had ''deliberately'' left out a reference to a July 12 suicide bombing in Netanya that killed five people.

''We expected that the new pope, who on taking office emphasized the importance he places on relations between the Church and the Jewish people, would behave differently,'' the Israeli statement read.

The pope's spokesman, Joaqu?Navarro-Valls, released a terse defense noting that Benedict had referred in his sermon to attacks in ''recent days.''

''It's surprising that one would have wanted to take the opportunity to distort the intentions of the Holy Father,'' he said in a statement. ''Obviously the other week's grave attack in Netanya referred to by Israel falls under the general and unreserved condemnation of terrorism.''

After the initial Israeli statement, Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom appeared to retreat somewhat, saying that he hoped the omission was ''a mistake and not a deliberate omission,'' The Associated Press reported.

The exchange was unexpectedly strong given the prominence that Pope Benedict has given to relations with Jews since he was elected pope in April, after the death of John Paul II, who was the first modern pope to visit a synagogue.

He mentioned Judaism alone among the world's other major religions when he was formally installed. In June, he met with top Jewish leaders, who said his efforts to reach out had softened many worries among Jews about a German pope.

Next month, Benedict is to travel to Cologne, Germany, where he is scheduled to visit a synagogue that was rebuilt after being destroyed in the Holocaust. He is also scheduled to meet with Muslim leaders in Germany.